Makamo_catalogue_110427_spreads-1

CityTales and CountryScapesCityTales and CountryScapesAn exhibition by Nelson Makamo

CityTales and CountryScapesCityTales and CountryScapesAn exhibition by Nelson Makamo

Acknowledgements

ForewordDavid Koloane

Contested Contemporaneity: Refl ections on Nelson Makamo’s Neo-Figurative SubjectsPortia Malatjie

Inspirations at the Periphery: Reviewing the Work of Nelson MakamoNontobeko Ntombela

Images

Nelson Makamo’s Curriculum Vitae

Nelson Makamo’s Biography

About the Contributors

Exhibition and Catalogue Teams

Contents6

7

8

14

17

40

41

42

43

CityTales and CountryScapes: An exhibition by Nelson Makamo | 5

Acknowledgements


Contested Contemporaneity: Refl ections on Nelson Makamo’s Neo-Figurative SubjectsPortia Malatjie

Inspirations at the Periphery: Reviewing the Work of Nelson MakamoNontobeko Ntombela

Images

Nelson Makamo’s Curriculum Vitae



Exhibition and Catalogue Teams

Contents6

7

8

14

17

40

41

42

43

The Twenty-First century is upon us, although only a few years ago, it appeared a millennium away. It has brought in its wake new

technology such as digital video computer and other related high tech art-making devices.

The postcolonial period or, closer to home, the post Mandela period has resulted in the acceptance of ‘multiculturalism’ as a global

phenomenon embracing diverse cultures. After the demise of the School of Paris and the School of New York, the community of

contemporary art began to include, at last, the previously colonised parts of the world. These areas had long been excluded from the

international art scene.

It is interesting to note that despite these drastic changes on the international front, South Africa is still entrapped in some of its artifi cial

barriers created by the racial zoning of the past. The art market in South Africa has always been controlled and determined by white

role players over the years. There is presently, however, a bold new generation of practitioners who refuse to be held hostage by the

past and expedite whatever opportunities that exist in the visual arts towards their benefi t.

The vexation over who is an international artist and who is not is still a discriminating factor employed in categorising artists and their

acceptance into the art market. It is not until artists take fate into their own hands that effective change will be possible. Black African

entrepreneurs will need to play a major role in the complexities of the art market in order to release black practitioners from the cap in

hand. This will include weaning ourselves from dependence on the commercial gallery.

Portia Malatjie is a young art historian and an independent curator who has undertaken the responsibility of curating Nelson Makamo’s

exhibition at the Museum Africa complex. Nelson Makamo from the Limpopo province is an alumni of the Artists Proof Studio. The

exhibition is hosted by Museum Africa. The museum is one of the few state institutions with a black African director at its helm. True

to the saying ‘the wheels of government grind slowly’, very few other institutions in this country have black heads – some of these

institutions are: The National Gallery and Museum in Cape Town and The State Theatre in Pretoria.

It is an imperative for black African role players to acquire the necessary expertise to remove whatever artifi cial barriers and obstacles

that still exist. The rigorous training of yesteryear in the traditional techniques of drawing and sculpture are no longer compulsory in

art training in tertiary institutions. Students are taught new media techniques and this has provided them with numerous options to

bypass the traditional techniques of drawing, sculpture and assemblage.

Yet the irony is that an internationally revered artist such as William Kentridge still employs traditional techniques in his drawing based

on animation. It is of course much easier to point a camera and video than a drawing device. Nelson Makamo, in his exhibition,

extracts and gleans subject matter from personal experience. His work will hopefully illustrate the solidity of traditional artistic methods

and their timeless intervention.


When Nelson Makamo approached Doctor David Koloane to curate his solo exhibition at Museum Africa, Doctor Koloane, due to his busy schedule, suggested to Makamo that I curate the show instead. Doctor Koloane has created an opportunity for me to spread my curatorial wings, and for that I shall be eternally grateful.

I am thankful to Nelson Makamo for agreeing to work with me, and for entrusting me with his exhibition. A big thank you also goes to Bertrand Reverdy for funding the exhibition. It is through his patronage that Makamo is able to form part of the South African contemporary art scene.

I am grateful to Museum Africa for the space in which to host the exhibition. A special thank you goes to Zola Mtshiza for assisting me with everything related to Museum Africa.

This catalogue would not have been possible without the assistance of a few people. I am grateful to Derilene Marco who edited the catalogue texts; Nyembezi Phiri of Studio Bezique designs; Madoda Mkhobeni of madimagescapture and Shawn Hatting of Simdall Projects. A big thank you goes to Lois Anguria for compiling the contributor’s biographies. Nontobeko Ntombela moved beyond writing the second essay in this catalogue, as she allowed me to pick her brain on a regular basis, imparting great knowledge about her curatorial experience.

I am also grateful to those who helped with the exhibition. They include Samson Matentji and William Mabidilala, Scandisplay, the Installation Team and David Lewis-Browne.

Tiffany Mentoor and Lois Anguria have been superb administrators on this project. I have thoroughly enjoyed working with them and appreciate their dedication and their creative input. I certainly look forward to working with them again in future.

Portia Malatjie

Acknowledgements

6 | CityTales and CountryScapes: An exhibition by Nelson Makamo CityTales and CountryScapes: An exhibition by Nelson Makamo | 7

The Twenty-First century is upon us, although only a few years ago, it appeared a millennium away. It has brought in its wake new

technology such as digital video computer and other related high tech art-making devices.

The postcolonial period or, closer to home, the post Mandela period has resulted in the acceptance of ‘multiculturalism’ as a global

phenomenon embracing diverse cultures. After the demise of the School of Paris and the School of New York, the community of

contemporary art began to include, at last, the previously colonised parts of the world. These areas had long been excluded from the

international art scene.

It is interesting to note that despite these drastic changes on the international front, South Africa is still entrapped in some of its artifi cial

barriers created by the racial zoning of the past. The art market in South Africa has always been controlled and determined by white

role players over the years. There is presently, however, a bold new generation of practitioners who refuse to be held hostage by the

past and expedite whatever opportunities that exist in the visual arts towards their benefi t.

The vexation over who is an international artist and who is not is still a discriminating factor employed in categorising artists and their

acceptance into the art market. It is not until artists take fate into their own hands that effective change will be possible. Black African

entrepreneurs will need to play a major role in the complexities of the art market in order to release black practitioners from the cap in

hand. This will include weaning ourselves from dependence on the commercial gallery.

Portia Malatjie is a young art historian and an independent curator who has undertaken the responsibility of curating Nelson Makamo’s

exhibition at the Museum Africa complex. Nelson Makamo from the Limpopo province is an alumni of the Artists Proof Studio. The

exhibition is hosted by Museum Africa. The museum is one of the few state institutions with a black African director at its helm. True

to the saying ‘the wheels of government grind slowly’, very few other institutions in this country have black heads – some of these

institutions are: The National Gallery and Museum in Cape Town and The State Theatre in Pretoria.

It is an imperative for black African role players to acquire the necessary expertise to remove whatever artifi cial barriers and obstacles

that still exist. The rigorous training of yesteryear in the traditional techniques of drawing and sculpture are no longer compulsory in

art training in tertiary institutions. Students are taught new media techniques and this has provided them with numerous options to

bypass the traditional techniques of drawing, sculpture and assemblage.

Yet the irony is that an internationally revered artist such as William Kentridge still employs traditional techniques in his drawing based

on animation. It is of course much easier to point a camera and video than a drawing device. Nelson Makamo, in his exhibition,

extracts and gleans subject matter from personal experience. His work will hopefully illustrate the solidity of traditional artistic methods

and their timeless intervention.


description of contemporary art in ‘non-Western countries’ to discuss the current

accepted standard of art in South Africa. Belting4 suggests that

...beyond the West, contemporary art...is hailed as a liberation from

modernism’s heritage and is identifi ed with local art currents of recent

origins. In such terms, it offers revolt against both art history with its Western

meaning, and against ethnic traditions, which is seen like prisons for local

culture in the global world5.

Following from Belting, I would suggest that contemporaneity not only revolts against

‘ethnic tradition’ but against any art form that is not recent.

When considering the South African art media, one can argue that there is a bias

towards contemporary artworks that utilise newer art mediums. There appears to be a

general disinterest in traditional art mediums such as painting, analogue photography,

drawing and printmaking- more recent, perhaps ‘cutting edge’ mediums such as

video art, performance art and installation art take preference. Beyond using current

media, contemporary art works often have to explore contemporary issues in an

abstract, theoretical and conceptual manner. The ideas explored in the work add to

their sense of contemporaneity and avant-gardism.

Another criterion for the inclusion/exclusion inherent in contemporary art is the

matter of aesthetics. Aesthetic theory, as argued by Robert Gero6, was divided into

two categories. There is a difference between the formalism of a work- the look of

the work- and the theory or idea behind it. In the former classifi cation of aesthetic

judgment, spectators are able to view and appreciate a work of art without knowing

the context of the art work, but more importantly, without art historical or social

scientifi c scholarship and theory7. The aesthetics of the work is dependent mainly on

the formalism of the work and the emotions it arouses in the spectator. Artists who

The contemporary South African art platform is fi lled with a variety of role players

and sub-groupings. These sub categories consist mainly but not exclusively of

commercial galleries, academics who are often affi liated with universities, art critics,

university art students, art centre students, museum art historians or administrators,

and curators, whether working independently or in an institution.

These interrelated groups are often in a state of perpetual confl ict: commercial

gallerists are criticised by academics for being obsessed with money while academics

are dismissed as being overly theoretical3. Although there are numerous forms of

classifi cations, some groups never become part of the debates within mainstream art

because their practice appears to not be worthy of mention. Some of these groups

are artists that work in what is called craft, and artists that work in traditional media.

While some of these groupings are excluded from mainstream art, there are the

groupings that partake in and enforce the exclusionary process. Art historians, art

critics and other purveyors of “high” art decide on the kinds of artworks that are

worthy of criticism or worthy of forming the basis of art historical research.

Contemporaneity is arguably one of the criteria for accepting works in the South

African mainstream art domain. The issue of contemporaneity is arguably one of the

reasons for excluding some artists from the mainstream. I will borrow Hans Belting’s

I have not had varsity education. That really bothers me.I feel that I have not learnt enough - Lehlohonolo Mashaba1

[There] are ideas that lie beyond the pale of any existing academic community. If you express such ideas you will be considered an eccentric. But if standards change, you may not remain an eccentric forever. - David Carrier2

Contested Contemporaneity:Refl ections on Nelson Makamo’s Neo-Figurative SubjectsPortia Malatjie

work in this form of aesthetic theory could utilise traditional art forms and still have

their work valued. The latter classifi cation suggests that the value of the artwork is

dependent on the theory and idea behind it8. This means that in order to appreciate a

work of art, the spectator needs to be acquainted with the theories referred to by the

artists, and the unintended theories that the artwork is referencing.

It could be argued that the South African contemporary art scene falls under the

latter classifi cation of aesthetics. This classifi cation is very elitist and exclusionary as it

eliminates spectators who do not know the context of the artwork, nor are well versed

in art history or academic theory. In contemporary South African art, a work that is

reliant on its formalism and not theory provides proof of its ‘non-intellectuality’ and

non-contemporaneity. This preference of theoretical ideas over the work’s formalism

is a perpetuation of the perennial binary oppositions of ‘high’ art versus ‘low/popular’

art where contemporary, cutting edge art is seen as high art.

Emerging artists9, especially those working in traditional media and producing

works that are not laden with concepts that require a substantial amount of

theory to decode, fi nd it diffi cult to generate interest in their works -both within the

scholarly and mainstream realms. These artists’ works are hardly ever perceived as

contemporary, and to lack contemporaneity is to not belong. To ‘belong’ in the art

domain is accompanied by some visibility. For an artist to be present and visible, both

artist and work need to be known, written about, and almost often publicly acclaimed

to attain a spot in the historical and current narrative(s) of South African art.

In the same way that artists such as Nelson Makamo are not researched, art historians

also did not show interest in researching African art soon after it entered Europe at the

turn of the 20th century. Even though African art was becoming part of art collections

and institutions in the west, this was not matched by equally intense research on the

work. The information on African artworks at hand was speculative- the works could

Where I Rest my Head is my HomeMonoprint, oil pastel and ink on paper

70 x 105.5 cm2011


be appreciated sans context10. In the same way that African art was “undeserving

of the more serious scholarly attention devoted to other world art tradition”11,

contemporary artists who produce works outside of the normative contemporary art

standards are relegated to that same fate. While collectors purchase their work- often

from their studios- their works are not discussed in art historical research.

Nelson Makamo and many others like him, form part of this excluded grouping

that hardly ever get discussed. Despite having exhibited locally and internationally

over the past few years, Makamo’s work does not really form part of any critical

discursive platform12. One of the aims of the CityTales and CountryScapes exhibition

is to showcase Nelson Makamo’s work in mainstream art scene and to open up a

discussion about his work through the show and the exhibition catalogue.

There is a danger that exists in the power placed in both the art historian as well as the

art critic. One fi nds it rather disturbing that decision making, power and authoritative

opinion over creativity lies not with the artist but rather outside of the realm of artistic

production, in the hands of curators, critics, and those whose job is to ‘observe’.

However, one cannot wholly dismiss the authority that critics and art historians have

with regard to infl uencing South African art history13. By choosing which works are

reviewed or researched, art historians and art critics set the standard for the kinds

of work that should be produced. Similarly, curators also have an authority with

regards to the kinds of works we choose to exhibit. This process of standardisation

is exclusionary in nature. David Carriers14 asserts that, “to talk about standards for

evaluating creativity is…to talk about how communities validate opinions and make

it possible to have constrained debates.” Artists falling outside of these ‘constrained

debates’ are relegated to a career of untroubled privacy, hawking their works from

their studios and exhibiting in shows that never receive public attention.

Making use of Museum Africa as a space to exhibit contemporary art is not without

its challenges. Reference to the space unearths an old debate about exhibiting

African artists in anthropological and ethnographic museums in the West. Among

these shows are Liberated Voices (1999) at the National Museum of Modern Art in

New York. Being shown in museums in the ‘West’ was a manner of classifi cation and

of differentiating great (Western) artists from the ‘other’ i.e. African artists. However,

with the birth of new museology, museums are rapidly reconsidering their existence

and meaning on the contemporary art scene.

Discussing the Content of Makamo’s Work

Nelson Makamo’s work is deeply rooted in fi guration. In his oeuvre, one can observe

a motif and a conceptual framework located in contemporary rural-urban migration.

His work, which can be classifi ed as contemporary fi gurative art or neo-fi gurative art,

explores issues of contemporary rural-urban migration in South Africa.

The birth of neo-fi gurative art in Mexico and Spain in the 1960s served to disrupt

the exclusionary nature of modern art by reintroducing an expressionist fi gurative

art form. By returning to the fi gurative mode of representation, neo-fi gurative art

questions modernity’s insistence on newness, progress and elitism. A discussion

of Makamo’s works in the framework of neo-fi gurative art contests the elitist and

so-called progressive nature of postmodernism and the kind of contemporaneity it

suggests.

Makamo’s work explores the manner in which rural-urban migration has changed

in accordance to contemporary culture. While migration still occurs, it has assumed

different forms. The boundaries between rural and urban are also becoming blurred

as more rural areas are beginning to resemble urban landscapes15. Urban spaces are

on the trot, encroaching onto the terrain of neighbouring urban areas and giving rise

to conurbation.

In some of Makamo’s work, it is hard to tell the difference between the urban and the

rural. For example, works such as Some Memories are Hard to Forget (2011) could

be a comment on his rural home (Modimolle) or perhaps a township in Johannesburg

(his new home). This ambiguity brings life to the work, challenging the viewer to

decode the works beyond the given visual evidence.

Makamo is fascinated by the city and its inhabitants; his works explore the multitude

of narratives experienced by the contemporary city dweller or city visitor. The city of

Johannesburg shows the imprint of the apartheid system. Under the Group Areas

Act (1950), Hendrik Verwoerd’s government ensured that black people’s movement

to the city was controlled. Black people could only enter the city if they were going

to work and contribute to the expanding apartheid capitalist system. As Achille

Mbembe and Sarah Nuttall observed, Johannesburg was “shaped in the crucible of

colonialism and by the labor of race”16.

Makamo’s view of the city, seen in his work, seems to suggest that the city’s main

visitors are black people. It seems that the walls put up by the apartheid regime

that demarcated areas where black people were allowed to go, and control the

times of their movements through the city, have not been entirely knocked down.

The rather foolish mechanism of discriminating using race has been replaced by a

perhaps more insidious mode of classifi cation: class. To confront the current state

of Johannesburg’s inner city- decayed, grimy and seemingly deserted- is to deal

with contemporary socio-economic and political issues of space and belonging. The

works ask who owns, who visits, who has fl ed and who has returned to the city.

In his recent work, Makamo has taken to presenting his subjects from a different

perspective: a view from his fourth fl oor studio in August House, a new hub for

Johannesburg’s art community. The aerial, “god-like” view- in works such as Monday

Midday (2011) and Pay Day (2011) - is one experienced by many, including those

who live and work in high rise building in the Johannesburg CBD.

In The Boy in Me, Makamo looks back to his childhood. Nostalgia for his childhood

is a constant motif in his work; he continuously makes reference to his young self in

Modimolle. Another reference to home is in the work Where I Rest my Head is my

Home (2011). In this work, Makamo references the idea of a sense of belonging in

the city. While Johannesburg might not be seen as ‘home’ for many black people

(Ntombela discusses this further by suggesting that people still refer to their rural

homes as ‘home home’), Makamo suggests that people can make any place their

home, including the city. Black people are no longer outcasts of the city; they don’t

merely access it to do menial work.

Where I Rest My Head is my Home is a ghost print of The Boy in Me II (2011).

Makamo always pays attention to the formalism in his work. He seldom relies on

the printing press, almost always reworking his monoprints and silkscreens with ink

and pastel. Most of his works are worked over with red and blue pastel, which are

the artist’s personal symbols of life and serenity respectively. The main print and

the ghost print become different works through the reworking process as Makamo

brings them to life in different ways.

Sometimes his subjects are wearing glasses while at other times they cover their

ears with headphones. Are they attempting to shut out the city’s lights or drown out

the noise in the streets of Johannesburg? Is he suggesting that only the noise they

produce is the only sound they will listen to? His subjects are always on a mission,

either walking away from the viewer or towards them, but, invariably, they are always

holding plastic bags, perhaps gesturing at the lumpen pavement commerce.

The exhibition title, CityTales and CountryScapes, is an oxymoronic take on the shifting

state of rural-urban migration. Tales are often associated with tradition and, therefore,

the rural; scapes (as in cityscapes and not landscapes) are often associated with the

city. Nelson Makamo’s work is an attempt to construct a narrative, varied tales, about

his and other people’s experiences of living in the city.


In some of Makamo’s work, it is hard to tell the difference between the urban and the

rural. For example, works such as Some Memories are Hard to Forget

be a comment on his rural home (Modimolle) or perhaps a township in Johannesburg

(his new home). This ambiguity brings life to the work, challenging the viewer to

decode the works beyond the given visual evidence.

Makamo is fascinated by the city and its inhabitants; his works explore the multitude

of narratives experienced by the contemporary city dweller or city visitor. The city of

Johannesburg shows the imprint of the apartheid system. Under the Group Areas

Act (1950), Hendrik Verwoerd’s government ensured that black people’s movement

to the city was controlled. Black people could only enter the city if they were going

to work and contribute to the expanding apartheid capitalist system. As Achille

Mbembe and Sarah Nuttall observed, Johannesburg was “shaped in the crucible of

colonialism and by the labor of race”

Makamo’s view of the city, seen in his work, seems to suggest that the city’s main

visitors are black people. It seems that the walls put up by the apartheid regime

that demarcated areas where black people were allowed to go, and control the

times of their movements through the city, have not been entirely knocked down.

The rather foolish mechanism of discriminating using race has been replaced by a

perhaps more insidious mode of classifi cation: class. To confront the current state

of Johannesburg’s inner city- decayed, grimy and seemingly deserted- is to deal

with contemporary socio-economic and political issues of space and belonging. The

works ask who owns, who visits, who has fl ed and who has returned to the city.

In his recent work, Makamo has taken to presenting his subjects from a different

perspective: a view from his fourth fl oor studio in August House, a new hub for

Johannesburg’s art community. The aerial, “god-like” view- in works such as

Midday (2011) and Midday (2011) and Midday Pay Day (2011) - is one experienced by many, including those Pay Day (2011) - is one experienced by many, including those Pay Day

who live and work in high rise building in the Johannesburg CBD.

Footnotes

1 L. Mashaba, Artist Proof Studios graduate, unpublished interview with Portia Malatjie, 2010.

2 D. Carriers, “Deep Innovation and Mere Eccentricity: Six Case Studies of Innovation in Art History” in E. Mansfi eld, ed., Art History and its Institutions: Foundations of A Discipline. London; New York: Routledge, 2002, p. 115.

3 E. Mansfi eld, “Introduction”, in E. Mansfi eld, ed., Art History and its Institutions: Foundations of a Discipline. London; New York: Routledge, 2002, pp 2-3.

4 Hans Belting, “Contemporary Art and the Museum in the Global Age” in P. Weibel and A. Buddensieg, ed., Contemporary Art and the Museum, Germany: Hatje Cantz Verlag, 2007, p. 2.

5 Belting’s text is slightly limited in that he does not acknowledge the different traditional art forms that have been produced in these so-called ‘non-Western’ countries. His text suggests that there was ‘ethnic’ art forms, and later ‘contemporary art. He fails to account for ‘modernist’ art production that has been taking place in areas like South Africa for many decades.

6 R. Gero, “Introduction: The Border of the Aesthetic” in J. Elkin, ed., Art History Versus Aesthetics, London: New York: Routlegde, 2006

7 R. Gero, p. 6.8 R. Gero, p. 3.9 I make a point of distinguishing emerging artists from established

artists with regard to their use of media. Artists such as David Koloane, Colbert Mashile, William Kentridge and Deborah Bell work in printmaking and drawing, and their use is accepted in South African Art domain.

10 C. Steiner, p. 134.11 C. Steiner, p. 13712 There are a number of articles written on Makamo, including one

in True Love (a popular magazine published by Media 24), which do not constitute critical discussions. Apart from a few instances, such as Makamo’s interview with Robyn Sassen (2007) in Art South Africa, Makamo has hardly been discussed in mainstream art scene.

13 The art historian and the art critic are important and so is the art patron or sponsor. Christopher Steiner (2002; 132) points to the infl uence that collectors had on the history of African art. In fact, it was the collectors who cleared the path for the art historians to set their discourses in writing. It is important to point out that CityTales and CountryScapes was made possible by Bertrand Reverdy, an art advocate by his own defi nition, as an attempt to rectify some of the exclusionary problems we are faced with in South African arts.

14 D. Carriers, p. 117.15 T. Champion & G. Hugo, “Introduction: Moving Beyond the Urban-

Rural Dichotomy” in T. Champion and G. Hugo, ed., New Forms of Urbanization: Beyond the Rural-Urban Dichotomy, England: Ashgate Publishing, 2004, p. 3.

16 A. Mbembe & S. Nuttall, “Introduction: Afropolis” in A. Mbembe and S. Nuttall, ed., USA: Duke University Press, 2008, p. 1.


the formation of a new visual vocabulary, increased recognition of black artists and expansion in the consumption of black art. The exhibitions, Neglected Traditions:

Towards a New History of South African Art: 1930 – 1988, curated by Steven Sack, Tributaries Exhibition (1985) curated by Ricky Burnett, and Land and Lives (1990), are consequences of this new interest.

However, the energy levels of yesteryear seem to have subsided. Perhaps the assumption is that, with the advent of democracy, opportunities have now become equitable3. Higher education in the arts remains mostly available in the large cities. This means that artists from rural areas have to move to the cities to access these opportunities - a journey which Makamo made from Modimolle to Johannesburg. Remaining in rural areas means that (aspiring) artists will fi nd it hard to interact with an audience that could potentially gain interest in their work.

Nelson Makamo’s work investigates the urban and the rural, the relationship between these and the occupiers of those spaces. He is observant in noting the people’s everyday experiences and the connectedness of different cultures and how this results in the creation of new identities - what could be called a multiplicity of city cultures. The title of the CityTales and CountryScapes exhibition examines concepts around identity, belonging and culture. Makamo’s work is a depiction of his personal experiences and his gaze of the world. The South African world he’s looking at is one still plagued by poverty and deep structural inequalities. The causes of these realities are depicted with care and awareness.

Like so many South Africans, Makamo’s reference to home is bifurcated; it refers to both an urban and rural home. His work thus speaks about redefi ning this sense of home and recreating a sense of belonging. Vulindlela Nyoni best describes people’s need to belong in his essay, On Art, Power, Other and Identity, saying, “as human beings we have [a] need for a sense of place, a sense of being and belonging – be it a geographical, biological, spiritual, we all employ our particular modes of self-recognition. [...] To put it simply, we all have need of a sense of home4.”

Makamo’s work depicts his numerous journeys between Modimolle and Johannesburg. His work also documents how the conditions of these spaces and their features continue to inspire many artistic movements. The way he documents these spaces brings to light the social impacts of these movements: the depopulation of rural landscapes and the concomitant overpopulation of the cities.

His works show an interest in people and his portrayal of the city dwellers is both tender and stark, and this is especially evident in the work titled Dreams (2010). This is a representation of several street kids huddling for warmth against an indifferent, cold cityscape. In the more recent work, Some Memories are Hard to Forget (2011), he uses memory as a strategy to create a nostalgic narrative grounded in his rural upbringing. Shopping for Life Materials (2011) is a wry commentary on urban consumption.

Nelson Makamo uses his creative skill to make poignant commentary on the urban and the rural and the movement between these two spaces. His work provides us with a new, insistent vocabulary to defi ne and map our everyday spaces.

Footnotes

1 Gladys Mgudlandlu an artist and art teacher in the 50s and 70s was quoted on the The Cape Argus newspaper, 4 January 1971 in an interview about the methods she uses to teach art in school. In this interview she refers to the ‘arts and craft’ as ‘handicraft’, the subject name that was used in the Bantu school curriculum. She was quoted saying ‘Handicraft as well as painting is a form of self expression. The kids do it their own way, as they like it – I Just help them to make it better. [...] I prefer to help the child express his artistic feeling and correct, guide and encourage him. Recently I sent my children to the factory dumping grounds, telling them to collect scrap material to use in the handicraft classes.’ (The Cape Argus: 1971)

2 Hendrik Frensch Verwoerd, South African History Online, accessed Thursday 21 April 2011. http://www.sahistory.org.za/pages/people/bios/verwoerd-hf.htm

3 The research conducted by the Human Sciences Research Council (2010) on the State of the visual Arts demonstrates that the current state of the arts still shows great imbalances rural and urban dwellers with regards to participation and profi t generating in the arts. What this research does is point out the challenges that artists such as Makamo still face. G. Hagg, An Assessment of the Visual Art Sector in South Africa and Assistance to the Department of Arts and Culture in Developing a National Policy for the Visual Arts DAC/0006/07/T. (Commissioned by the Department of Arts and Culture, September, 2010.

4 Nyoni V, “On Art, Power, Other and Identity”, C. Brown and N. Paul, ed., Ishumi/10, Durban: Durban Art Gallery, 2004, p. 86.

South Africa’s recent and distant history has been shaped, in no small part, by migration, especially that of rural dwellers moving to the urban areas. Disenfranchisement and land expropriations pushed people from their rural idylls into urban spaces to become part of the cash economy.

Apartheid’s core infrastructure has been dismantled but rural-urban migration continues as people move to the city to earn a living. The migration is a one-way street that siphons young people’s move from the rural to deposit them into the urban areas. Few make the return journey. One could argue that the same is true about artistic practice; due to a lack of higher education facilities and dearth of opportunities in rural areas, artists in those areas move to the big cities to gain a qualifi cation and make a living.

The current lack of opportunities is a result of South Africa’s apartheid past. Arts and craft previously called ‘handicraft1’ was included into the primary school curriculum in 1948-the year the National Party took over. This was a consequence of Prime Minister Hendrik Verwoerd’s belief of the inferiority of black people - he expressed this in the now infamous statement that described blacks as fi t only to be “hewers of wood and drawers of water”2 – in essence, Verwoerd made it apparent that the apartheid system had clear delineations of power and in this system, black people were fi t only to be labourers. Those who went through the schooling system were taught art forms that could have been perceived as inferior- examples of these are carving, beading and weaving. These paved a way of preparing black people for their destiny as labourers. However, some of these skills are now accepted as formal craft and fi ne art forms, allowing for many artists- including artists from rural settings- to be exhibited in galleries and on other mainstream platforms.

The 1980s exhibited an era of political upheaval and the art landscape largely mirrored these changes. There was a sudden need for public institutions to refl ect the artistic practices of the time. There was a need for diversity and inclusion, particularly in cultural production. The corollary was the inclusion of artists from rural areas into the mainstream; an increase in scholarly interest in neglected artists,

The Journey of Inspiration:Reviewing the Context Nelson Makamo’s WorkNontobeko Ntombela

Dreams ICharcoal on paper100 x 150cm2010


the formation of a new visual vocabularexpansion in the consumption of black art. The exhibitions, Towards a New History of South African Art: 1930 – 1988

Tributaries Exhibition (1985) curated by Ricky Burnett, and consequences of this new interest.

However, the energy levels of yesteryear seem to have subsided. Perhaps the assumption is that, with the advent of democracy, opportunities have now become equitable3. Higher education in the arts remains mostly available in the large cities. This means that artists from rural areas have to move to the cities to access these opportunities - a journey which Makamo made from Modimolle to Johannesburg. Remaining in rural areas means that (aspiring) artists will fi nd it hard to interact with an audience that could potentially gain interest in their work.

Nelson Makamo’s work investigates the urban and the rural, the relationship between these and the occupiers of those spaces. He is observant in noting the people’s everyday experiences and the connectedness of different cultures and how this results in the creation of new identities - what could be called a multiplicity of city cultures. The title of the CityTales and CountryScapes

around identity, belonging and culture. Makamo’s work is a depiction of his personal experiences and his gaze of the world. The South African world he’s looking at is one still plagued by poverty and deep structural inequalities. The causes of these realities are depicted with care and awareness.

Like so many South Africans, Makamo’s reference to home is bifurcated; it refers to both an urban and rural home. His work thus speaks about redefi ning this sense of home and recreating a sense of belonging. Vulindlela Nyoni best describes people’s need to belong in his essay, On Art, Power, Other and Identity

beings we have [a] need for a sense of place, a sense of being and belonging – be it a geographical, biological, spiritual, we all employ our particular modes of self-recognition. [...] To put it simply, we all have need of a sense

Images

Untitled

Monoprint

130 x 42.5 cm

2011


Growing Up

Ink on Paper

104 x 24.9 cm

2011


Untitled

Monoprint and oil pastels on paper

106.8 x 78.2 cm

2011

Mr Nice Guy


106.8 x 78.2 cm

2011

Never Talk Back

Silkscreen and oil pastel on paper

111 x 70 cm

2011


Growing Up

Ink on Paper

104 x 24.9 cm

2011


Shopping for Life Materials

Monoprint, oil pastel and ink on paper

75.2 x 123 cm

2011

The Boy in the Me II


69.7 x 105.4 cm

2011

Streetwise

Silkscreen

70.9 x 100 cm

2011


A Product of Limpopo with Joburg Label


119.6 x 70.2 cm

2011

The Vision is So Narrow


119 x 70.2 cm

2011


I’ve got a Vision

Ink on Paper

103.9 x 24.8 cm

2011


Reunion


62.2 x 101.5 cm

2011

Helpless Dreamer


62 x 101.4 cm

2011

Monday Midday

Silkscreen

70.6 x 99.9 cm

2011


Mind of a Youth

Ink on Paper

103.6 x 28.8 cm

2011


Moment Alone

Monoprint

77.7 x 106.5cm

2011

The Boy in Me I


70.2 x 99.5cm

2011

Keep in Touch

Silkscreen

70 x 111.1 cm

2011

Pay Day

Silkscreen and ink on paper

70.2 x 99.5cm

2011


Some Memories are Hard to Forget

Ink on Paper

103. 8 x 25.1 cm

2011


Education

2003-2006 Artist Proof Studios

Solo Exhibitions

2009 Sharing Realities II, African Studies Centre, Leiden, (Netherlands)

Walk with Me, UTS Gallery, Edinburgh, Scotland

A Place I Call Home, Gallery on the Square, Johannesburg

2008 Moving into Light, KZNSA Gallery, Durban

Sharing Realities, Gallery Izarte, Zutphen, (Netherlands)

2005 Walk with Me, Obert Contemporary Art Gallery, Johannesburg

Group Exhibitions

2010 Young Contemporaries, Galerie Nikki Diana Marquardt, Paris (France)

My City, Arts on main, Johannesburg

2009 City Link, Gallery 23, Amsterdam, Netherlands

Interpretation of the 50’s, Gallery on the Square, Sandton, Johannesburg

2007 Cultural and Business Art Exhibition, Somma Lombardo, Italy

Making Identity, The Thompson Gallery, Johannesburg

2006 Ten Years of Printmaking, David Krut Print Studios, Johannesburg

Student and Staff Artists Proof

Studio Exhibition, Gallery on the Square, Johannesburg

2003 Student and Staff Artists Proof

Studio Exhibition, Wits Substation Gallery

Print Marathon RAU Art Gallery, Johannesburg

Print Marathon, Boston (USA)

Publications

The Arts Section (2010) Street Art. True Love, p. 90.

Hengen, E (2010) Das Wahre Gesicht Suidafrokas, Tageblatt, p. 18.

Zvomuya, P. (2010) Jozi for the Alienated. Mail and Guardian, p. 6.

Collections

Annie Lennox

City of Johannesburg

Georgio Armani

Hanzehof Zutphense Kunstcollectie

Matasis Investment Holdings

Telkom

Unisa

Nelson Makamo was born in Nylstroom (now Modimolle), Limpopo province, in 1982. Makamo moved to

Johannesburg to join the Artist Proof Studio in January 2003. He was the recipient of the Johnson and Johnson

bursary (2005) and the Pinpointone Human Resources Scholarship (2005).

Makamo has exhibited in group and solo exhibitions in South Africa, France, Italy, America, Netherlands and

Scotland. His fi rst solo exhibition, Walk with Me, was held at the Obert Contemporary Gallery in Melrose Arch,

Johannesburg. His most notable group exhibition was alongside established South African artists in Ten Years of

Printmaking: David Krut Print Studio in 2006. Invited artists included David Koloane, Colbert Mashile, Deborah

Bell and William Kentridge. Makamo has recently exhibited with emerging young artists Lehlohonolo Mashaba

and Senzo Shabangu in My City exhibition, curated by Andile Magengelele.

Makamo’s commissioned works include a series of Lekas Lekalakala’s portraits for a Chamber Lekalakala opened

at Potgitesrus (now Mokopane), in 2006. Other commissioned works include portraits of Nelson Mandela, Oliver

Tambo, and Walter Sisulu, for Matasis Investment Holdings. Matasis is a portmanteau of the names of these

South African icons.

Makamo’s work forms part of a few collections, including those of fashion mogul, Georgio Armani, and musician,

Annie Lennox. Makamo was Art South Africa’s seventh “Young Bright Thing” for 2007.

Nelson Makamo’s Curriculum Vitae Nelson Makamo’s Biography


Nelson Makamo was born in Nylstroom (now Modimolle), Limpopo province, in 1982. Makamo moved to

Johannesburg to join the Artist Proof Studio in January 2003. He was the recipient of the Johnson and Johnson

bursary (2005) and the Pinpointone Human Resources Scholarship (2005).

Makamo has exhibited in group and solo exhibitions in South Africa, France, Italy, America, Netherlands and

Scotland. His fi rst solo exhibition,

Johannesburg. His most notable group exhibition was alongside established South African artists in

Printmaking: David Krut Print Studio

Bell and William Kentridge. Makamo has recently exhibited with emerging young artists Lehlohonolo Mashaba

and Senzo Shabangu in

Makamo’s commissioned works include a series of Lekas Lekalakala’s portraits for a Chamber Lekalakala opened

at Potgitesrus (now Mokopane), in 2006. Other commissioned works include portraits of Nelson Mandela, Oliver

Tambo, and Walter Sisulu, for Matasis Investment Holdings. Matasis is a portmanteau of the names of these

South African icons.

Makamo’s work forms part of a few collections, including those of fashion mogul, Georgio Armani, and musician,

Annie Lennox. Makamo was Art South Africa’s seventh “Young Bright Thing” for 2007.


Portia MalatjieAt the time of writing, Portia Malatjie had just submitted her Masters thesis in History of Art at Wits University, Johannesburg. Malatjie

is an aspiring curator and has been involved in a few exhibitions. In 2010, she was curatorial researcher and Education Programme

Coordinator for the SPace: Currencies in Contemporary African Art (2010) exhibition and chief curator for Blissful Disturbance (2010

Wits University Fine Arts Masters Exhibition at UCT). Malatjie occasionally writes for the City Press and Artthrob. She has participated

in a number of conferences and panel discussions, including the South African Visual Art Historian (SAVAH) Conference (2009). She

was recently a panelist of a discussion entitled, Ain’t I a Woman, a talk examining Tracey Rose’s exhibition Waiting for God at the

Johannesburg Art Gallery (2011).

David KoloaneOne of South Africa’s own veteran in the arts, Doctor David Koloane has made a substantial contribution to the development of art in

Southern Africa. Born in 1938, Koloane received his fi rst art training at Bill Ainslie Studios during the mid to late seventies. His interest

in art began in his high school years and has since carried him to take part in many prestigious exhibitions and art programmes

including the Triangle International artists Workshop Exhibition (1983) and the Liberated Voices: Contemporary Art from South Africa,

exhibited at the Museum for African Art in New York (1999) and other exhibitions in Holland, Finland, England and Italy. It was from

his involvement in the Triangle International Artists Workshops that Koloane went on to co-found the Thupelo Workshops. He is the

winner of the Prince Claus Fund Award (1998) for his contributions to the arts. He is the co-founder of the fi rst Black-owned gallery

in Johannesburg, Fordsburg Artists Studios - now known as the Bag Factory. He is currently the Director of the Bag Factory Artists’

Studios in Newtown.

Nontobeko NtombelaNontobeko Mabongi Ntombela is studying towards her Masters degree in Fine Arts at the University of the Witwatersrand. Ntombela

has curated several exhibitions including Modern Fabrics (Bag Factory in 2008) and the MTN New Contemporaries Arts Award,

KZNSA Durban in 2010. In Durban, Ntombela participated as a facilitator in the Isimangaliso Arts Programme. Ntombela has also

presented papers at workshops, seminars and conferences; a highlight is the New Kirkcudbright International Arts Festival in 2007

which took place in Scotland and where she also completed a residency as a visiting co-ordinator in 2004. Ntombela is the co-founder

of Dala, an artist collective and the 20th Century Sisters Network; both were founded in 2008. She has served on the boards of a

number of organisations, most recently the VANSA National Committee in 2010. Ntombela is curator at the Durban University of

Technology Gallery from 2006- she is currently on study leave.

Contributors’ biographies compiled by Lois Anguria

Exhibition/Curatorial Team

Portia Malatjie Curator

Tiffany Mentoor Administrator

Lois Anguria Assistant Administrator

Catalogue

David Koloane Contributor

Portia Malatjie Contributor

Nontobeko Ntombela Contributor

Lois Anguria Contributor

Deriline Marco Copy Editor

Madoda Mkhobeni Photographer

Nyembezi Phiri Layout designer

Simdall Projects Printer

Museum Africa

121 Bree Street

Newtown

Johannesburg, 2001

T: +27 11 833 5624

F: +27 11 833 5636

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recorded or otherwise, without prior permission of

the CityTales and CountryScapes’ exhibition team.



Exhibition/Curatorial Team

Portia Malatjie Curator

Tiffany Mentoor Administrator

Lois Anguria Assistant Administrator

Catalogue

David Koloane Contributor

Portia Malatjie Contributor

Nontobeko Ntombela Contributor

Lois Anguria Contributor

Deriline Marco Copy Editor

Madoda Mkhobeni Photographer

Nyembezi Phiri Layout designer

Simdall Projects Printer

Museum Africa

121 Bree Street

Newtown

Johannesburg, 2001

T: +27 11 833 5624

F: +27 11 833 5636

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system or transmitted in any form or by any means, electronic, mechanical, recorded or otherwise, without prior permission of

the CityTales and CountryScapes

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